Family Outing to Mesa Grill
Sunday, September 23, 2007
http://www.mesagrill.com/newyorkcity/
102 Fifth Ave
NY NY 10011

My wife and I decided to take our family out for brunch this past Sunday. That's a picture (from left to right) of my Mother-inlaw, Dad, me, my nephew, Mom and brother-in-law. My sister and wife aren't in the picture. My wife isn't allowed to be named or shown in this blog and I don't want my sister taking any fame away from - this blog is only big enough for one of us.

My wife and I have eaten brunch at Mesa Grill a few times before and we took my sister there for dinner a few years back, but this was a first for the rest of our family. The menu is American food with Southwestern accents. Most of the food has bold flavors and some have a nice spicy kick to them. I started with a Spicy Bloody Mary. This drink is a great way to begin brunch and to set the tone for a Sunday. It is a very peppery concoction and very refreshing in its own way. Definitely opens up the palate and surprisingly the spice doesn't kill your taste buds. I went with BA R B E C U E D PO R K + OA X A C A CH E E S E QU E S A D I L L A with Hot + Sweet Cabbage Relish as a starter. Not only is the dish very tasty, but it is very filling. It's a big portion, full of pork and cheese. You could probably have this and skip a main if you wanted. I chose to also order the BL U E CO R N BU T T E RMI L K WA F F L E with Blackberry Bourbon Syrup + Vanilla Creme Fraiche as my main. I was full from the quesadilla but I liked the savory sweet mix of my dishes. I already had it in my head that I was going to skip dessert (which I hardly ever do) so this combination, with the waffle being so dessert-like, was a good one. The waffle was light and crisp with an almost invisible, but flavorful amount of syrup and the light, foamy and sweet creme fraiche. I ate what I could and then had to stop because the creme fraiche made the rest of the waffle too soggy to be enjoyable. Not a problem because I was full.

My wife ordered “RO U G H CU T ” RAW T U N A NA C H O S with Mango Hot Sauce and Avocado Crema to start. These are pretty good, with large chunks of raw tuna and a sweet and hot sauce to complement the meaty and tender fish. Again, it is a large portion and could pass for a main.Mesa Grill is one of her favorite restaurants because the food is straight-forward and has bold flavors, but she was disappointed with her main of SP I C Y SC R AMB L E D EG G S
with Green Onion, Jalapeno, Goat Cheese and Apricot Mustard Glazed Ham Steak and Buttermilk Biscuits. She thought the eggs were plain and nothing special, the ham steak was just like bland ham and she didn't really touch the biscuit too much. She told me later that she wished she'd ordered the SP I C Y CH I C K E N + SWE E T POT A TO HA S H with Poached Eggs + Green Chile Hollandaise, which is one of my favorites; but once again, her inability to make a decision and treat ordering from the menu as if she was entering launch codes for nuclear missiles led her to ultimately make a bad decision - typical.

Everyone else seemed pretty happy with their dishes. My Dad was hoping the SI X T E E N SP I C E CH I C K E N with Roasted Garlic-Mango Sauce, Blue Corn Tamale with Basil Butter was going to be spicier, but he was happy with how it tasted. He had a CHILLED CARAMELIZED GRAPEFRUIT with Blackberry-Mint Salad to start and commented that he would like to do something like this at home. My Mom had SO P H I E ’ S CH O P P E D SA L A D with Her Own Special Dressing + Crispy Tortillas as a starter and the ME S A BU R G E R with Double Cheddar Cheese, Grilled Vidalia Onion and Horseradish Mustard on a House Roll + Southwestern Fries as a main. These have to be two of the largest dishes on the menu and even though my Mom is a small woman she polished everything off.

Over the last few years my wife and I have tried to take our parents out to eat in the city more often and I think they really appreciate the food at the places we bring them. It makes me really happy to see them enjoy themselves. They are very modest people who have worked hard their entire lives to provide a good life for their children and it makes me feel good to do something nice for them. A brunch with the entire family is not just chance to let them try some good food, but to have a memory to last forever.

My nephew didn't have a starter but he tried some stuff from our dishes, including - if I remember correctly - my wife's raw tuna dish. It's always funny to hear my sister say how he won't try something and then he goes and eats something like raw fish, which many adults may not ever take the opportunity to try. I hope his adventuresome palate stays with him as he gets older. He also had the waffle like his uncle (me) and he ate most of it. I remember driving with him the week prior and as he saw the big buildings in the distance he got excited. I told him I was going to take him to the city the next weekend and when I called my sister the night before she told me how he'd been asking about it, just to make sure we were still going to take him. Again, I'm happy the family had a chance to spend quality time together and give my young nephew a happy memory.

Overall, Mesa Grill doesn't disappoint. Some dishes may not be 1st place winners, but nothing is really bad. The service is always good and the atmosphere friendly. We've gone here many times and I would say we will continue to go in the future. The total bill for all 8 of us, with tax and tip was $270. I was shocked at how modest the bill was - 2 alcoholic drinks, 4 non-alcoholic drinks, 4 sides of bacon/sausage, 6 starters and 8 mains.